


Puppy Love

by eafay70



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Not Hockey Player(s), M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-02
Updated: 2018-03-02
Packaged: 2019-03-24 00:09:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13799253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eafay70/pseuds/eafay70
Summary: Soccer player Evgeni Malkin adopts a dog named Jeffrey. Hockey commentator Sidney Crosby adopts a dog named Sam. A fundraiser for the shelter where the adoptions happened brings them together.





	Puppy Love

**Author's Note:**

> This week's prompt: puppies!  
> I was inspired by my sister's high school best friend, whose mother breeds golden retrievers and hosts an event on the boardwalk every summer for everyone who's adopted a puppy from her to get together and show off the dogs. I have a huge soft spot for mutts, so I changed the event to an adoption thing. =]
> 
> I made Geno a soccer player in honor of MLS starting tomorrow! =D The real-life Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC are in the USL, which is the second division; I made them an MLS team for this fic to make it more plausible that Sid would have heard of them.
> 
> And I made Sid a hockey commentator in reference to the NBCSN commentators for last night's Penguins-Bruins game. They were...how do I put this politely...not very nice. ><

_Part 1: Zhenya (December)_  
It took a few moments for Zhenya to recognize his surroundings when he woke up: He was in his brand new home in Pittsburgh, where he had recently signed a contract with PIttsburgh Riverhounds SC, a football club -- no, a soccer team, as they called it here. The season had just ended with the team getting knocked out of the first round of the MLS Cup (whatever that was), so there wasn't much for Zhenya to do except take pictures to send to his family and friends back in Russia.

Zhenya looked around his bedroom and sighed. He'd known that it would take some time for him to make friends here in America, but he hadn't predicted how empty his new home would feel in the meantime. How could he make a friend quickly?

Then the idea hit him: a pet! There was an animal shelter within walking distance, as he'd discovered while looking for the grocery store, so getting a pet would be no trouble at all! Zhenya smiled to himself as he got dressed and headed out.

Zhenya entered the store and immediately flinched at the sound of very loud squawking. "It's ten o'clock," the worker behind the cash register explained. "The birds like to compete with the cuckoo clock."

"Birds winning," Zhenya declared.

The worker walked around the counter, smiling at Zhenya. "How can I help you?"

"I'm look for pet," Zhenya said. English felt weird in his mouth, but the worker, whose nametag read 'Lola', kept smiling, so Zhenya figured he was understandable. "I'm travel a lot, live alone - what good pet for me?"

Lola hummed in thought. "We have a few dogs who are already housebroken, and we can give you information on dog-sitters and dog-walkers. Want to see them?"

"Okay." Zhenya followed Lola to the dog section of the shelter, where several dogs of various ages greeted them with happy barking. One dog in particular caught Zhenya's eye. "Who that one with pug face?"

"That's Jeffrey." The dog jumped at the sound of his name. "He was housebroken by his previous owner, but they moved. He's younger than he looks."

"Hi, Jeffrey." Zhenya held out his hand, which Jeffrey sniffed and then licked. "I'm like him."

"Wonderful!"

  


_Part 2: Sid (January)_  
Sid loved his job as the Penguins commentator for the local sports station - except for today, which was the start of the team's bye week. He looked around his too-big house and sighed wistfully, wondering why he'd decided to move into such a large space when he'd first gotten the job a few years earlier.

Oh, right: He'd expected to meet someone, adopt enough kids to make a hockey team, and teach said kids responsibility with as many pets as they wanted. Sid shook his head and laughed softly at himself, realizing that he hadn't been on a single date since before moving to Pittsburgh. Since the station staff was so small, Sid had to do a lot of his own research and producing, which meant very little time for a personal life. And since he spent the off-season visiting friends and family all over Canada, trying to start something serious while he didn't have work was out of the question.

A thought suddenly crossed Sid's mind: Maybe he didn't have the time to meet someone and start a serious relationship, but he certainly had time for a pet! A cuddly animal wouldn't mind his intense schedule so long as Sid took care of it, which of course he would!

Sid pulled out his phone, did a quick search for local animal shelters, and decided on a place a few blocks away. He walked to the shelter and smiled at the hockey sticks in the display window.

"Hello!" The worker behind the cash register waved as Sid entered the shelter. "How may I help you?"

"Well...Lena..." Sid read the worker's nametag quickly. "I'm looking for a pet. Nothing exotic, because my schedule gets intense sometimes, but something lovable."

"All of our pets are lovable," Lena assured him. "How about the dogs?"

"Sure." Sid followed Lena to the dog section and smiled at the sound of happy barking. "That one looks nice."

"Sam?" The light-colored dog practically ran up to Lena and Sid. "He's a sweetheart. His previous owner had to downsize, so he could use some love."

"That's something I can provide."

  


_Part 3: Both (August)_  
The email came as a pleasant surprise: The animal shelter was hosting a 'Doggy Day' in the park so people who had adopted dogs from the shelter could meet each other. The event would also raise money for the shelter, which was always a good thing. With not much in the way of sports in August, they were free to go, and so they did.

Sid noticed the man giving orders in what sounded like Russian right away. The dog in question was cute, of course, but its owner was tall and handsome - just the kind of man Sid liked. His immediate infatuation must have been clear to Sam, because the dog started running in that direction despite Sid's orders to heel.

The shouting attracted Zhenya's attention while he was practicing tricks with Jeffrey. He looked up and couldn't help smiling at the sight of a very cute dog running towards him - with a very handsome man giving chase. "Your dog like me!" Zhenya laughed.

"Or your dog," Sid panted, watching Sam sniff the other dog.

"That okay," Zhenya smiled. "I'm like you."

Sid gulped and finally got a good look at the other man. "You're the Russian striker for the Riverhounds! Malkin, right?"

"Can call me Geno," Zhenya said, offering the nickname English speakers preferred. "And you?"

"Sid."

They smiled at each other for a few moments before Zhenya squeezed Sid's hand. It was the beginning of a beautiful case of puppy love...even though Jeffrey and Sam weren't puppies.

**Author's Note:**

> As always, feedback is greatly appreciated! :D


End file.
